Chennai Super Kings (CSK) clinched their fifth IPL title on Monday (May 29) by defeating Gujarat Titans (GT) in the final at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja played a key role in CSK’s narrow five-wicket victory (DLS method) in the summit clash. He took the prized scalp of Shubman Gill and returned with the bowling figures of 1/38 in four overs.
Chasing the revised target of 171 in 15 overs, the Super Kings were at 149/5 when Jadeja came to the crease. Amid the pressure situation, the southpaw held his nerves and played a match-winning cameo of 15* in just 6 balls, hitting Mohit Sharma’s last two deliveries for a six and a boundary to seal the deal for CSK.
After the game, CSK head coach Stephen Fleming lauded Jadeja’s heroics while also admitting that he had conceded defeat with 10 needed off the last two balls.
"They say there are no fairy tales in the sport, but it was a pretty good one today. It has been a bit difficult 18 months where, as the captaincy was difficult, the injury was difficult, it took a bit of time from out of the game for him to come back into and be reintegrated into the Test side, and then re-integrate into CSK," Fleming told the media in Ahmedabad.
"We have lost finals on the last ball which is an absolute heartache. I was gearing up myself for another heartache when Jaddu hit one for six and there could have been more heartache or more joy, I was not sure.
"But when I saw the ball go down, finally there was pure joy. This competition takes you to emotional levels that you cannot imagine," he added.
The former New Zealand captain further praised Jadeja, saying that he repaid CSK skipper MS Dhoni’s faith.
"He plays a great role with the ball, but we have got so much fire power, that some ways we use him down the order, but something has to give. MS (Dhoni) has been very supportive and proactive in getting him up there and today he repaid that faith," Fleming remarked.
Explaining Jadeja's shot selection, Fleming said: “The six, I think, in particular of the ball which was pretty close to being perfect, was defining, and then left-handed drive to the fine leg. It was a great way to finish it. I couldn't be more happy for him. There has been some frustration at times, but he is our gun player, he is a No 1 ranked player and today he delivered.”
In a rain-marred affair, the Titans piled up a mammoth 214/4 in their allotted 20 overs after being asked to bat first. Sai Sudharsan was the top scorer with 47-ball 96 while Wriddhiman Saha (54 off 39), Shubman Gill (39 off 20) and Hardik Pandya (21* off 12) chipped in with handy contributions.
The CSK coach acknowledged that they were not up to the mark with the ball.
"215… I thought it was an excellent score but the rain came and we had to change the momentum. We felt with the moisture around on the pitch, it was gettable. It was going to take a lot of batting.
"The start was really important because we were still shell-shocked from the fielding. The first four or six overs started to give us the belief and once we got a little bit of taste for it, it is that type of ground where it is very hard to defend, so we knew we had a chance. It was going to be high octane all the way through," Fleming stated.
(With TOI Inputs)
